Hibernian

• Celtic have spent 64.8% of their game time winning in the Scottish Premiership this season, the highest proportion of any side in 2026-27. Hibernian, meanwhile, have spent the highest proportion of their match time losing (49.7%).

• Hibs have won just three of their past 26 league games against Celtic (D8 L15), although two have come in the previous two seasons (2-1 in February 2025 and February 2026).

• Celtic are looking to win as many as nine of their first 10 league matches of a season for the 16th time. Four of their previous 15 came under Martin O'Neill (2000-01, 2001-02, 2003-04, 2004-05) - more than any other manager in the club's history.

• Celtic have won four of their past five league visits to Easter Road (L1), and are looking to win three in a row for the first time since February 2012 (run of 5).

• Hibs have lost five of their past six league games (D1) and seven of their past eight at Easter Road (D1).

Brian McLauchlin
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

The new manager bounce expected when Marink Reedijk replaced David Gray has yet to materialise and patience among Hibernian supporters is already being tested.

Saturday's defeat by Falkirk, their first top-flight loss to the Bairns at Easter Road in 20 years, left many fans asking serious questions about the direction of their team.

It is now more than six months since Hibs last won a Scottish Premiership match at home. With every game that passes without a victory, confidence appears to be draining from a team desperately in need of a lift.

The questions are mounting. What is the identity of this side? How can Reedijk get the best out of his players? Why are so many underperforming? And how much responsibility lies with the manager, as opposed to a recruitment strategy that is increasingly coming under scrutiny?

Reedijk insisted after Saturday's defeat he felt more positive than he had following the loss at Dundee United seven days earlier. That may offer some encouragement from within the dressing room, but the league table makes uncomfortable reading.

Being bottom of the Premiership, even at this early stage of the campaign, is hurting a club whose supporters expect far more.

The next 10 days provide three opportunities to change the mood around Easter Road. First up is the visit of champions Celtic on Sunday.

Few will give Hibs much chance against a side that rediscovered their scoring touch in spectacular fashion last week, hitting seven past Hearts.

It is a daunting assignment for a team short on confidence, but that does not mean it should be approached with a sense of inevitability.

The next challenge is a midweek trip to Paisley to face St Mirren, who have been conceding plenty of goals amid a five-game losing run. That is a fixture Hibs must view as a genuine opportunity.

Then comes the small matter of a Scottish Cup semi-final against Hearts at Hampden. It is the kind of occasion that can transform a season, particularly for a group searching for confidence.

For now, the priority is simple. Hibs need to start winning, and Reedijk needs his players to show that they believe they can.

Former Dundee and Dunfermline Athletic boss and one-time Hibernian player James McPake urges under-pressure Hibs manager Marink Reedijk to "stick to your principles". (Sun, external)

Ex-Hibs boss Neil Lennon questions whether there is enough mental health support for managers and feels criticism can be "way over the top". (Sun, external)

Thursday's Scottish gossip

Image source, PA Media

Is a "disconnect" at Hibs making Marink Reedijk's job even tougher?

The Dutchman has lost his opening two games in charge, with Hibs falling to the foot of the table, a point behind Kilmarnock and Motherwell.

"Reedijk has come in and he is trying to make changes in the backdrop of a little bit of disharmony at the club between the fans, the team and the hierarchy, there is a disconnect there," said The Scotsman sports editor Mark Atkinson.

Speaking on the BBC'S Scottish Football Podcast, he added: "I don't think it is all Reedijk's fault. There are a lot of other issues at the club.

"All these little things add up to discontentment because the team is not playing very well.

"There is also a feeling Hibs were in a good position in the summer. They had just finished fifth, they had qualified for Europe for the second time in a row, and they completely failed to capitalise on that situation.

"Inevitably fans train their sights on the board, on Malky Mackay, David Marshall, on Ian Gordon the owner, because they feel Hibs should be in a better place.

"The discontentment is not going to go away until either Hibs start picking up victories or there is change at the very top. And I think the former is more likely than the latter.

"The first two matches we have seen glimpses of what Reedijk's Hibs team could look like, especially going forward. There have been some green shoots, but at the moment, it is a really difficult situation for Hibs."

Matty Fairnie
Fan writer

The 'R' word was on the lips of fans I was speaking to on the way out of Easter Road on Saturday evening. Not Reedijk, but relegation.

Hibs are bottom of the table having taken no points from games against St Johnstone, Kilmarnock, Motherwell and now Falkirk - all teams tipped to be in the conversation for the drop at the end of the season.

People are starting to ask if Hibs also face that battle this season.

Nothing is decided in October and I saw signs of what Marink Reedijk is trying to do with the team on Saturday.

We conceded from two mistakes that look dreadful when they cost you a goal. And there's a real worry we're lacking the quality needed at either end of the pitch, but it's early days with Reedijk and we have to hope our luck changes, as it did when David Gray found himself in this situation in his first season.

While Reedijk is unlikely to match Gray's record-equalling unbeaten run in that third-placed campaign, there's plenty of time left this season for him to put enough results on the board to compete at the right end of the table, so nobody should be pushing the panic button just yet.

I like the cut of Reedijk's jib. There was improvement from the defeat against Dundee United, so while you don't want to see the team lose, there's still some leeway for a manager bedding in new ideas.

I'm told he's got the players in six days a week and while this might feel drastic, I'm hoping the squad embrace it and recognise we need everyone pulling together and working hard to drag Hibs off the foot of the table.

Celtic are up next on Sunday, hopefully they've got their goal spree out of their system and their strikers have an off day at Easter Road.

You can find Matty Fairnie at Longbangers podcast, external

Image source, SNS

At this stage, a change in the dugout has done nothing to ease Hibernian's woes.

If anything, they are worse.

There has been no new-manager bounce following Marink Reedijk's appointment, with two successive defeats in his opening matches against Dundee United and Falkirk.

That leaves them bottom of the Premiership, having won just two of their first nine league games, and without a home league victory in more than six months.

Speaking on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast, writer Alison McConnell says the club are in "complete and utter disarray".

"I just think they look all over the place," she added. "There's a real lack of conviction, a lack of belief. One point from the last six games. They look rudderless.

"I'm not sure you're seeing an identity within that team. I think if you were a Hibs fan just now, there would be real cause for consternation because it's difficult to see the direction the manager wants them to go in.

"It's difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel just now."

Patience will be required if new boss Marink Reedijk is to be a success at Hibernian, says Sportscene pundit Richard Foster, but his players currently look "bereft of confidence".

Saturday's home defeat by Falkirk means the Dutchman's reign has begun with two successive losses, leaving the Leith side bottom of the Premiership table, with leaders Celtic up next.

Watch Sportscene highlights of the weekend's top-flight action

Watch all the highlights as new Hibs boss suffered a second defeat in as many games in charge after a home defeat to Falkirk rooted them to the bottom of the table. Available to UK users only.

Hibs fans, we asked for your views after Saturday's defeat to Falkirk.

Here's what some of you said:

John: Marink Reedijk still has to find his best XI but is not helped by players making stupid mistakes, poor passing and having no composure in the opposition box. As long as the players buy into his ideas we'll be okay.

Lee: Let's look at the bigger picture. How many signings and how many managers have actually lived up to the expectations of a club this size over the last few years? What supporters should all realise now, as they vented their frustration part fuelled by the distraction of what's going on at Hearts, is that David Gray wasn't the problem and this club has an issue elsewhere within its set-up.

Tom: It is obvious that recruitment is the issue, can't keep blaming and sacking managers. There are no leaders in the team, just a bunch of average footballers playing as individuals with no structure to their play. So sad for a big club like us with so much history of great footballers and now this rubbish.

Tony: Better performance in the second half. Hoping that Reedijk has seen enough to form an opinion on a starting XI and definitely recognise where certain players cannot play a position. Feel for him as there is a lack of belief, confidence and ability across the team. It's not going to be a quick fix.

Chanaan: New manager but same Hibs. I can't wrap my head around how we can put together a whole new team season after season but still keep playing the same tactics over and over. Negative, "back to the keeper" football at every opportunity. Since when have Hibs been so uncreative, empty in attack, and truly just void of stringing a couple of passes together in succession without handing the ball to the opposition. If nothing changes soon we're in real danger.

Andy: Bottom of the league says it all. Hibs are a shambles from top to bottom. It doesn't matter how many managers are hired and fired, until the basics of squad management and recruitment are resolved there will be no progress. Too many players are just not good enough and aren't trying hard enough.

Rangers (£132m) have the 23rd most valuable squad in British football behind the 20 Premier League clubs and Championship duo West Ham United and Wolverhampton Wanderers, with Celtic (£104m) at 28th, while Heart of Midlothian (£21m) are 49th and Hibernian (£15m) two places below. (Transfermarkt, external)

Read Sunday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Hibernian have slipped to the bottom of the Scottish Premiership after a seventh consecutive home game without a win, after Falkirk ruined Marink Reedijk's home debut as manager with their first top flight win at Easter Road in over 20 years.

Read the match report

Have your say

Image source, SNS

Hibernian manager Marink Reedijk: "The summary is individual mistakes. They scored two goals from our individual mistakes. We scored a good goal ourselves and had moments to score again but didn't. The game changes if you do so because then Easter Road is behind us but this didn't happen."

"What I have seen today is a step forward compared to Dundee [United]. That sounds strange but that is really what I think. We took control of the whole match and had some good opportunities but then we have to score these.

"I think we controlled the match more. I think we dominated the opponent and dictated what happened. You can't afford these little mistakes individually. Therefore [Falkirk] come into the match. Yet we keep on stepping forward, we keep on showing that we are brave. We come back into the match at 2-1. If you have 20 shots and seven on target, Falkirk can sit in and block a lot of those balls. So it's a combination of how the matches go and individual decision making in the last third.

"I hate it [Hibs being bottom of the league]. It's something I don't want. I also think that based on the match today, we don't deserve it. But it's a fact and it's up to us to continue what we do, unpack the things we need to really work on and make sure that these little mistakes don't happen and that we create momentum in our matches more for ourselves.

"We need to work hard, stick to the things we do, develop the things we do; make sure that we make fewer and fewer mistakes and make sure that we take our chances. I leave very disappointed with a strange feeling in my stomach because I think the guys worked their guts out. I think we deserved more however we didn't get more. I'm therefore positive but with a sick feeling in my stomach."

Image source, SNS

Hibernian welcome back Adam Mayor and Jamie McGrath, but Callum Wright, Nathan Lowe and Jacob Devaney, who is suspended in any case, have all picked up injuries and join Kanayo Megwa (thigh), Rocky Bushiri (Achilles) and Jordan Obita (calf) on the sidelines.

Falkirk are set to be without Aodhan Doherty (foot), Joe Gardner (thigh), Keelan Adams and Ethan Laidlaw (both ankle).

Image source, SNS

Josh Mulligan admits he has struggled to find his best form as Hibernian's early-season run of poor form continues.

The 23-year-old was one of the standout players in the Scottish Premiership in the first half of last season, earning him a Scotland call-up a year ago, before an ankle injury halted his progress in January.

After returning to Easter Road at the end of last season, the 23-year-old has started all 16 of Hibs' competitive matches this season but has found it tough to get back last season's levels.

"It's been a bit up and down," the former Dundee player said of his own form.

"I've not been nearly consistent enough, and I think that's a reflection of how we've been playing as a team as well, just not good enough.

"It's frustrating, but you need to keep going. I've always got that belief in myself and I think once the team starts really clicking, the performances will come."

Hibernian are 10th in the Premiership after winning just two of their eight league games so far, and they were unable to enjoy a new manager bounce as they went down 2-1 to Dundee United last weekend in Marink Reedijk's first game since succeeding David Gray.

Mulligan is optimistic, however, that the new manager's philosophy will come good, but conceded their form since the summer has been tough for the players to deal with.

"It's been frustrating," he added.

"The confidence is low, you can see it in the games.

"Everyone is buying into what the new gaffer wants, and I really believe if we do what he's asking us to do, the results and the performances will come.

"But it's been tough and frustrating. You don't want to be losing every week, so we just need to try and get a good performance tomorrow and get ourselves up the table."

Image source, SNS

Hibernian manager Marink Reedijk is keen to block out any external noise before Falkirk's visit on Saturday afternoon.

Bairns cournterpart John McGlynn suggested on Thursday that his team could capitalise on the sense that all was "not rosy in the garden" at Easter Road and try to ensure their fans are "not happy" again this weekend.

In Reedijk's first game as Hibs boss, his side suffered a 1-0 defeat by Dundee United, extending their winless run to five Premiership games.

At full-time, some supporters from the away end clashed with police, leading to Hibs announcing the ban of their Block Seven Ultras group from their next three matches.

"They can say whatever they want," Reedijk said. "For me, it's important that we do our job and focus on the things we have to do.

"Then let's see if he's right or not, because I think then it will turn against them."

Despite their loss at Tannadice, Reedijk is adamant Hibs "are in a good way" and added that he was "buzzing" for his first game at Easter Road.

The Dutchman revealed that wing-back Adam Mayor and midfielder Jamie McGrath are back in contention, but Nathan Lowe, Jacob Devaney and Callum Wright have all sustained injuries.

"On Callum, I cannot say yet because it happened late in the week," Reedijk added.

"Nathan and Jacob are mid-term I think, around a few weeks."

• Excluding own goals, Hibernian have eight goals from 131 shots and Falkirk have five goals from 92 shots in the Scottish Premiership this season. Their shot conversion rates of 6.1% and 5.4% respectively are two of the bottom three in the division this term (Kilmarnock the other with 6.1%).

• Falkirk are the only side without an away win in the Scottish Premiership this season, drawing three and losing one of four outings.

• Hibernian are without a clean sheet in 14 league games, their longest run in the Scottish Premiership since going 15 games without a shutout from August to December 2019.

• Falkirk are winless in six top-flight visits to Hibernian (D2 L4) since a 1-0 victory in September 2006.

• Hibernian have only lost one of their last 14 top-flight meetings with Falkirk (W8 D5), a 4-1 away defeat in January last season.

Beveren technical director Bob Peeters believes new Hibernian manager Marink Reedijk will bring success to Easter Road, just as the 34-year-old did with the Belgian club despite a disappointing first season there. (Daily Record, external)

Read Thursday's Scottish Gossip in full.

Matty Fairnie
Fan writer

We didn't get the start we hoped for as Marink Reedijk took charge for the first time on Saturday.

A good opening 15 minutes gave some hope before old habits crept into the team and we struggled to create chances.

These are inherited issues for Reedijk, and we should know that it'll take more than the two weeks he's had with the team to put them to bed.

A "pre-season on steroids", as the head coach described it, can only take you so far, and by Reedijk's own admission there's a lot of work still to do.

The team looked disjointed and this again maybe shouldn't have been a surprise given we started with a new centre-half pairing and a refreshed front four.

With Falkirk up next, Reedijk's priority will most likely be finding a way to improve his side's potency in the final third. He lamented wasted passes, too many touches, and poor decisions when reflecting on Saturday's game.

I'm sure Gray would sympathise as these were issues he called out all too many times post-match during his tenure.

Solving that problem will be a huge step towards to a successful season.

You can find Matty Fairnie at Longbangers podcast, external

Andy Burke is joined by Hibernian Women head coach Joelle Murray and Scotsman sports editor Mark Atkinson to assess the contrasting fortunes of Edinburgh's two biggest clubs.

An early change of manager, a poor summer of recruitment and strife between fans and the Easter Road hierarchy, can Marink Reedijk turn it round?